1/19 WWE Raw Reax

Terrie Neilson of Las Vegas, Nev. (8.5): Best: Orton gets a McMahon feud. Worst: the matches. There was a lot of sloppiness in tonight's matches, but the segments made up for a lot of it. With one punt, it looks like Randy will be feeling the wrath of the McMahons this year going to WrestleMania. It has been done plenty of times with Vince vs. others, so Stephanie (and possibly Shane) in the spot works. Shane vs. Randy wouldn't be my cup of tea, but a suitable replacement would make for an interesting match. There are a few choices open, but I'm gonna wait to see what happens. Punk did earn his IC Title if only for the brutal head and shoulder bump he took from Regal's overhead throw. Regal's a lot better on those, so don't know where the move went south. How fast the mighty have fallen: Chris Jericho is apparently back in the Rumble, but was done in such a matter of fact way. Except for the heel run with Shawn Michaels, his total run before and since the feud has been horribly mismanaged. The beatdown on Cena suggests, as has happened often in the past, that Cena will retain the title. But something else in that contract signing segment suggests a joker is in the stacked deck. While Shawn did set Cena up for the JBL beatdown, there was a clue that "the real Shawn" was still behind his eyes. It almost seemed like a subtle tease that Shawn was going to turn on JBL right then and there. The only weak part of the promo was Cena's repetition. The point was to drive the point home to Shawn, but what really could have been of substance was dangle a title shot in front of him.

Sam Weiss of San Diego, Calif. (8.0): Best match: IC Title. Worst match: the opening battle royale. Highly appropriate was Punk's win in Chicago tonight, especially after how his homecoming turned out last year. A good match, a very good match, between Punk and Regal, delivering what I had hoped. The only problems was the length - too short, and the intruding commercial interruption. I realize such physical intensity and hard shots that they were performing cannot be maintained for a long time, but I hope they will wrestle a 15-minute re-match that we can see in its entirety. The other standout of the night is Randy Orton, who looks good and is taking the anti-hero role previously performed by DX, Austin, and others. Many in the crowd want to cheer Orton now, and if he continues on his current path I expect that to grow. I only wish I liked his in-ring wrestling more, as his current repertoire seems limited to stomps, punts, and an occasional DDT from the ropes. As good as Orton is becoming, his entourage, whom I now label The Weenies, are pretty lame. Again we have DiBiase just laying down - does he have no balls of his own or he just going to borrow Randy's on occasion? As for Cody, that young guy needs to get a clue. Here is the clue for you young guys out there: when a beautiful and very sexy young woman continues to want to speak with you week after week perhaps she is looking for something more? Cody should have continued with Mickey and asked if she wanted to go get a bite to eat and speak more. Instead, we get a lame promo for a DVD. Priceless? No, just clueless.

We welcome your 0-10 score and comments on this show for a "WWE Raw Reax" feature in the Torch Feedback section of PWTorch.com. Just to add a twist to this feature, include not just your hometown, but also your occupation (mechanic, lawyer, stay-at-home-dad, college student, etc.) so readers get a flavor for what everyone does as "day jobs." To contribute your thoughts on Raw, click here.

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